Grandmother says system failing despite WA child protection minister's flying visit
On the anniversary of her grandchildren's burial, Dorothy Papertalk is leading calls for change in South Hedland as a political firestorm grows over Western Australia's child protection failures.
Dorothy Papertalk, a South Hedland elder, expressed her outrage at the ongoing systemic child protection failures in Western Australia's resource-rich north-west. Despite the recent flying visit of WA Child Protection Minister Jessica Stojkovski, who met with various stakeholders, Ms Papertalk remains deeply disappointed and frustrated.
The 55-year-old grandmother lost three grandchildren - Jamelia, 10, Arnda, 7, and Kelvin - in July 2022, when their mother Margaret Hawke murdered them and set their home on fire. Hawke was later sentenced to life in jail. However, Ms Papertalk alleges that the Department of Child Protection failed to intervene in the case despite multiple warnings and that the children were removed from her care and returned to their mother.
She accused the department of failing to protect vulnerable local children and denied a request for a coronial inquest. Stojkovski acknowledged her department's role in the incident but disputed The Australian's portrayal of events, stating that there was no evidence of 15 children living alone for extended periods in South Hedland. The minister has been criticized by opposition leaders for her response to the situation.
Written by urgent.news from ABC News AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
